Tag: Relationships

This Saturday afternoon visit to church is an exceptional one. I was expecting to do some cleaning and grass trimming but I guess either I was late or I came too early. Nonetheless, I was able to reflect once again on a few things – that are connected to foods.

After leaving the church to have a little snack, I never thought that such simple act would not only invigorate my physical body but also my soul. Before I finished my bread and hot chocolate drink, I saw Celine walking towards me in an act of preparing for a warm embrace. And wow, how I missed the child!

I met Celine last Summer in our Daily Vacation Bible School. After the said activity’s success, she became a regular attendee of our Church. But because I was so vocal in teaching about false religions in our Sunday School for adults, we lost her because her relatives’ religion was our topic for one Sunday. Her family was offended. So seeing Celine once again in an act of intimacy ignited good memories between us. I remembered the simple card she gave me before that has the phrase “Best Teacher Ever”.

After my short moments with Celine, I went back to the church. Still there was no one. I was offered some kikiam and palamig for free by a Christian family. I insisted to pay and started to have some conversation. It was a nice attempt to start relationships.

The blessings around foods would not end still. I received a text message from Ate Nelda inviting me to a food fellowship. Wow! The family is dear to me, they have been with me for some time in the ministry. We had some dinner together and it was also the start of their ministry called “God’s Promises for the Youth Ministry Center”.

Food is one of my love languages. If you want my presence for an hour or so, offer me some food and we’ll have some quality time together! It not only brings refreshment to the body, it also brings warmth to the soul.

We do not naturally want bad endings. We do not want to be hurt, and when we do, if we could only turn back time, we would have corrected it. But for us the only sure available option is to start anew.

To begin again, however, is not that always easy. Often it is harder than we thought. Being dreamers in nature, we are always in the illusion that it would be better this time – that we are capable of doing better while exercising the least of efforts. Wrong.

As we strive to be better, there are many things that would pull us downward. The thoughts of past failures are always there. The inward weaknesses, the fleshly desires which are often undealt, would shake our determination to succeed. Noteworthy to mention – the judgement of the people around – those people who have marked out how filthy you are based from your past mistakes and sins – always play insurmountable forces to hold you back.

The only incentive then is to look upward and realized that there is Someone who is capable of ‘forgetting’ your errors and would not judge you, seeing that you are truly repentant and really try to change. Your forgiveness and shame could be deeper than the sea, but His forgiveness is even deeper than the abyss. You may have not felt real love, but His embrace is wider than the sky.

His Person and love alone are great motivations for each one of us to be hopeful that as long as He grants us to live another day, there would always be hope for genuine change.